Celebrating Life

April 3, 2016April 4, 2016

Riding Segway in HYD

I always wanted to try Segue, since it’s unveiled more than 15 years ago, but seen in main stream only in last 5 years, specially at tourist attractions around the world. Segue was once touted as the PT Device (Personal Transportation) which will actually change how roads and cities will be planned. However, Segway hasn’t impacted much on how we commute.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Segue Ride as one the weekend activities on both ClearTrip and BookMyShow mobile apps. So, thus weekend, I planned for Segway ride event along with Aniketh, and his cousins Phani and Akshaya. We spent around 2 hours exploring SEGWAY ride around Necklace Road of Hyderabad. I took about about 5 minutes to get comfortable, and it was lots of fun after that.

I felt Segway needed a Horn, when I drove it on Indian roads, as so many folks / vehicles are coming in the way, and I felt there is no way to alert them,saying, “hey, I am coming towards you…”. However, Luckily the coordinators of the activity (from MYTRIP) were ahead of us on a Scooty and shushing everyone away , and helping us to get them out of the way. For a minute, we felt as if we were celebrities. There were many who taking our snaps and shouting, “How much is the cost of the ride ?”

I have attached GoPro to the ride, and recorded attached 2 min footage.

More trivia on Segway. I have read about Segway in 2001 for the first time. There was quite bit of suspense on special device that would be launched that year. Specially comments from Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs made it very interesting to look forward. Here is the full story on early days of Segway (sourced from the net)

Dec. 3, 2001: Segway Starts Rolling

2001: Inventor Dean Kamen unveils the Segway Personal Transporter, a two-wheeled, self-balancing scooter, on Good Morning America. The Segway PT made its debut after months of hype and rampant press speculation during which it was known only by its code name, “Ginger,” or sometimes just “It.” Kamen’s reputation as a brilliant inventor and businessmen opened doors, and the cleverness of his design convinced backers they were onto something hot.

And then the cover came off, and the Segway was revealed to be … a scooter. Yes, it was an amazingly high-tech scooter, with just two wheels and complicated electronics and a gyroscope enabling it to self-balance. Riding a Segway was giddily fun: You just thought about moving forward, or back, or stopping, and the machine did what you wanted, thanks to its ability to sense and respond to very slight shifts in your balance.

But with a price tag that started around $5,000, the Segway PT pretty much doomed itself to a niche market: rich guys who aren’t afraid to embarrass themselves in public. Despite the small but enthusiastic market, the Segway has caused some controversy due to potential conflicts between it and other forms of urban traffic. Some people just aren’t too keen on the idea of a person riding a 60-pound scooter bearing down on pedestrians at its maximum speed of 12.5 mph, and some cities (as well as Disneyland) have restricted their use. That said, 44 states and the District of Columbia allow Segways to operate in the same spaces as pedestrians and bicycles.

Segway says it has sold “tens of thousands” of the devices since they first went on sale in 2002. Segway fans use them to play “Segway polo” (Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is a player). Monster CEO Noel Lee favors one, the better to tower over you at trade shows and conferences.